Gricia pasta is one of the most famous dishes of Roman cuisine and it can be considered the ancestor of amatriciana pasta. It is one of the culinary specialties of the popular Roman cuisine although its origins are not very clear. Like any dish of traditional Roman cuisine, it has undergone variations and elaborations based on the taste of the host or chef. Let’s find out more about Gricia pasta, a very tasty dish. According to some, it was born in the city of Amatrice, on the border between Lazio and Abruzzo. The basis of this idea is the use of shepherds to bring some foods with them such as lard, dry pasta, pecorino cheese and pepper. Mixed together they gave life to a dish similar to today’s gricia pasta.
According to others, however, the term gricia derives from the locality of Grisciano, near Amatrice. For others, it could derive from gricio, the retailer of bread and various foods. In fact, the griscium was in Rome the gray duster used by bakers to avoid getting dirty with flour. From there, the use of this word to indicate neglect of clothing.
Gricia: a roman traditional dish
Amatriciana is a gricia with tomato, introduced in the kitchen in the nineteenth century. Carbonara is a gricia with egg. Cacio e pepe is a gricia without bacon. In addition to these famous dishes, there are various versions of it, based on the taste of the host. To prepare this classic Roman dish, you will need 400g of pasta, preferably spaghetti, and 250g of guanciale, a cured pork cheek. The richness of the dish comes from the guanciale fat and a generous amount of grated Pecorino Romano cheese. Add a pinch of salt, a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, and freshly ground black pepper to bring everything together.
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